AGFC’s Waterfowl Habitat Program Featured in Latest USDA Grant Approvals 

Arkansas rice producers will once again have the opportunity to participate in the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Waterfowl Rice Incentive Conservation Enhancement program, thanks to the recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service of the AGFC being awarded a grant through the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program.

“The $2.1 million grant will help support the WRICE program for the next three years, paying Arkansas rice producers to forgo fall tilling, flood their fields to make waste rice available for migrating waterfowl and shorebirds, and allow limited public hunting opportunities on private land that would normally be inaccessible to duck hunters in the general public without a lease,” AGFC Director Doug Schoenrock said. “With the recent news that a combination of commodity prices and recent weather conditions have eliminated more than 283,000 acres of planted rice fields from Arkansas’s landscape, the need for flooded wetland habitat is critical to maintain healthy waterfowl populations throughout their migration. This program is one of many steps the AGFC is making with private and federal partners to keep more habitat on the ground when the waterfowl need it most.”

AGFC’s WRICE program was established in 2018 with the focus on leaving waste rice in fields and flooding those areas through landowner incentive payments. During the 2019-20 waterfowl season, WRICE was expanded to include hunting opportunities on these qualifying lands through a managed draw system on weekends during hunting season.

“Arkansas received an identical grant to this one during the 2020-21 waterfowl season, enabling us to expand the hunting opportunities and habitat, from 11 fields to more than 50,” Schoenrock said. “With the help of the VPA grant, we expanded flooded wetland habitat for migrating ducks, geese and shorebirds by more than 3,000 acres, and did so while giving the Arkansas duck hunter more opportunities to enjoy a flooded rice field hunt than ever before. With this new grant, we hope to extend this valuable program well into the future for hunters, landowners and the ducks and geese that have made Arkansas famous.”

In a video update from the USDA, NRCS Chief Colton L. Buckley specifically highlighted the AGFC’s WRICE program as an example of these grants meeting the needs of the farmer, landowner, wildlife and enthusiasts who enjoy America’s Great Outdoors through hunting as well as birdwatching and nature-based recreation.

“These 19 projects mean more opportunities for hunters, more outdoor access, and ultimately more income streams for American producers in the rural communities,” Buckley said. “We’re proud to put farmers and landowners first while expanding wildlife conservation and outdoor recreation opportunities for everyone.”

The WRICE Program is coordinated through the AGFC’s Private Lands Habitat Division and is made possible by Greenway Equipment, an AGFC cultivating partner. Visit www.agfc.com/wrice to learn more.

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CUTLINES:

HUNTERS
The AGFC will be able to offer more than 3,500 acres of waterfowl habitat and public hunting opportunity thanks to the recent renewal of a USDA NRCS grant.

RICE HEAD
The AGFC WRICE program incentivizes rice producers to leave waste rice in their fields instead of tilling it under and flooding the land to increase waterfowl habitat.

COMBINE
Recent estimates calculated that Arkansas’s landscape has 283,000 fewer acres of rice fields this year due to spring weather and commodity price fluctuations.